U.S. Attorneys May Prosecute Man Accused of Selling Guns to Gangs : Courts: A Simi Valley man and four others are to be arraigned in the wake of a Tuesday raid.

The case involving a Simi Valley man who allegedly tried to sell guns to a Los Angeles gang may be turned over to the U.S. attorney’s office, law enforcement officials said Wednesday.

Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Lt. Roger Clark said that if the federal government, rather than the L.A. County district attorney’s office, prosecutes the case, it would be processed more quickly and Steven Breitel and four other suspects would face stiffer penalties.

However, Clark said it was not certain when a decision would be made, and the suspects are scheduled to be arraigned today in Newhall Municipal Court.

Breitel, a prominent gun show promoter with no prior criminal record, is expected to be charged with possession of machine guns and possibly solicitation to sell the weapons to an undercover officer, authorities said.

Clark said other charges also may be filed against Breitel but declined to give details.

Breitel was among five people arrested during an early-morning raid on his house Tuesday in the 5500 block of Maricopa Drive, part of the upscale Indian Hills subdivision.

Deputies seized 48 weapons, including automatic rifles and laser guided pistols, authorities said. Some of the weapons were confiscated at Breitel’s business office in the 4400 block of Industrial Street.

Some of the seized weapons may be legal, but it is against the law to own automatic weapons in California, Clark said.

A dozen vehicles were seized, including a custom-made speedboat and a $200,000 Italian-made Pantera sports car, along with $6,000 cash, authorities said.

Others arrested Tuesday include Daniel Lee Martin, 19, of Van Nuys; David Andrew Muskeini, 22, of Simi Valley, and Sean Allen Fein, 23, of Granada Hills. The three men are expected to be charged with unlawful possession of automatic weapons.

The four men were booked into the jail at the sheriff’s Santa Clarita station and are each being held on $100,000 bail.

Breitel’s 21-year-old daughter, Rebecca, was also arrested on suspicion of possessing stolen property, including a New York City detective’s badge. She was released Wednesday on her own recognizance pending further investigation, Clark said.

Clark said the arrests culminated a two-week investigation that started when Breitel offered to sell six machine guns for $6,000 to an undercover officer in Santa Clarita. Clark said the undercover officer made it clear to Breitel that the guns were to be used for criminal activity, “and it didn’t mean a thing to him.”

He said that according to a reliable informant the gun deal fell through when Breitel got a better offer from the Crips street gang. He said authorities obtained a search warrant for Breitel’s house and business office after they received information that Breitel was planning to make a shipment to gang members on Tuesday.

Clark said no evidence has been uncovered indicating that Breitel had sold weapons to gang members in the past.

“The extent of his operation has yet to be determined,” he said.

Meanwhile, authorities said that Breitel filed for bankruptcy in April, listing debts of $395,185. Court papers revealed that Breitel owed $72,000 in back taxes to the Internal Revenue Service, $165,000 to Charter Savings Bank in Newport Beach, $77,500 to Aames Home Loan in Los Angeles and $18,500 to Beverly Hills attorney Bruce Hochman.

Michael Joncich, an official with the state Bankruptcy Court, said Breitel was granted a discharge from his debts on Aug. 30 by U.S. Trustee Donald W. Henry. However, Joncich said the case is being further investigated because of Breitel’s arrest.

Joncich said that Breitel had not listed many of the vehicles and legal weapons seized in Tuesday’s raid as assets and that Breitel may face additional charges of bankruptcy fraud.

Breitel has been holding gun shows in Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties for a number of years, according to a number of gun dealers.

Breitel’s last show was at the Ventura County Fairgrounds on July 6 and 7, said Teri Raley, a fairgrounds spokeswoman. She said he has held between six and eight shows a year at the fairgrounds for 17 years.

Breitel’s neighbors described him as a nuisance. They said they were constantly calling the police because he parked his numerous cars, trucks and vans along the street.

“He had a lot of cars, and I always wondered how he got them,” said one neighbor, who asked that his name not be used.